


Don't Defy The King

by helvetesfonster



Category: Ghost (Sweden Band)
Genre: Broken Bones, Gen, Ghost BC Reverse Big Bang 2020, a lot of swearing, brief mention of exposed bones (nothing too explicit), shitty attempt at comedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-11
Updated: 2020-09-11
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:06:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,015
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26406205
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/helvetesfonster/pseuds/helvetesfonster
Summary: Piece written for the Ghost Reverse Big Bang 2020. Fic inspired by the amazing art done by @of-devils-and-drawings on Tumblr.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 20
Collections: Ghost BC Reverse Big Bang 2020





	Don't Defy The King

It was a pretty warm day for the middle of winter. The cardinal definitely missed what a true January was like. Childhood memories began to flood his mind, as a small smile spread across his lips. Thunderstorms used to decor the night sky almost every day and the chill morning zephyr could properly freeze you to the bone. 

Copia shrugged on a coat as he stared at himself in the mirror, eyeing suspiciously over his own reflection. He bit at the inside of his cheek gently and shook his head. “No.” He murmured and took off the piece of clothing he had just put on. “‘s too much.” He gently ran his hands down over the jacket of his suit, smoothing it out. “Keep it simple.” 

“Where are you going?” 

“ _Merda._ ” Copia jumped slightly and let out a shaky breath, huffing as he spun around to meet the intruder. “What are you doing in my room?” He placed his hands on his hips and raised an eyebrow, meeting Cirrus’ characteristically piercing gaze. “It’s our day off. Why aren’t you doing… whatever you do during your free time?” 

“I’m bored.” The ghoulette shrugged a shoulder and crossed her arms under her breasts, raising an eyebrow back at the cardinal. Not like he could see it with her mask in the way. But she had a feeling that Copia could tell what her expression looked like at the moment. “So. Where are you going?”

Copia pursed his lips together and shook his head. “Eh, out.” He waved a dismissive hand around and rubbed the back of his neck gently with the other one. “Nothing important.” He reassured and gave a couple quick strides over to his desk. His mismatched stare scanned the table quickly, a pleased hum escaping his lips as he found what he was looking for. He picked up the napkin with a messy list written down on it and folded it carefully, before placing it in his back pocket. “Now, if you’ll excuse me.” 

“Out is not an answer.” Cirrus huffed and frowned deeply, watching the man walk past her and into the hallway without a second glance. Rude. She pulled herself off the frame of the door, sighing dramatically. “Are you really going to make me chase you?”

“Well, I’m not actually _making_ you do anything.” Copia looked over his shoulder at Cirrus, who was picking up the pace with him. He tilted his head to the side slightly and gave her a small smile. “But I won’t judge if you want to do so.” 

“You’re dressing up. Where are you going? Do you have a date? Is it a _hot_ date?” Cirrus teased and nudged Copia’s side gently with her elbow, smirk widening as a light shade of pink blush appeared on the top of the man’s cheeks. “It is! Do tell! Who’s the lucky girl? Or is it a lucky guy?” 

With an exasperated roll of eyes, Copia stopped walking and turned to face Cirrus properly. “I’m going to the supermarket.” He looked away quickly and rubbed his hands together anxiously.

Was he serious? He couldn’t be. He had to be lying, right? Why else would he get nervous over going grocery shopping? “I don’t believe you.” Cirrus scoffed and brought two fingers to her lips in thought. Her brain was working at speed limit trying to decipher what the cardinal was hiding. “Why wouldn’t you just tell me you’re going shopping?” She narrowed her eyes and made sure to never break the eye contact. She was a living lie detector.

“Because—” Copia grumbled. “Because I don’t want anyone to know, okay?” 

“That you’re going to the supermarket?”

“Yes! I don’t want to take any ghouls with me and have to end up buying half of the store. It’s not like we can afford it and I’m not in the mood to deal with any stealing at the moment.” 

“Huh.”

Copia furrowed his eyebrows at that and stared into Cirrus’ eyes, putting as much effort in trying to read her thoughts as she was putting into reading his. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“It means, it makes sense. Kind of. Why did you dress up? Why not just send a Sister to do the shopping?” Cirrus leaned back against the wall of the hall, hooking one ankle over the other, head tilting slightly as she eyed over Copia. So far, his body language didn’t show any signs that made Cirrus doubt his words. She was just trying to understand. 

“Because only _I_ know what type of olive oil I like. Whenever I send someone else, I always get the wrong one. And I like to dress up. Can’t I just look nice for the sake of it?” Copia answered easily and raised an eyebrow with a careless shrug. “Lucifer didn’t give me these to not show them off.” He patted his thigh gently, followed by a smack at his ass. “If I can make someone sin, I’m not gonna pass on that opportunity.” 

An incredulous laugh adorned Cirrus’ lips, raising her eyebrows in amusement as she stared over the cardinal. She nibbled gently at the corner of her lower lip with her sharp canine and shook her head. “You’re ridiculous. And full of yourself.” 

“I didn’t choose the thick life, okay? I think kids say _thicc_ nowadays. Interesting, right?” Copia tried his best to accentuate the hard ‘c’ sound and grinned foolishly. He was actually proud of himself for being able to catch up with the slang the younger ghouls often liked to use. 

“If you say so, I guess. To me you look like a stick.” Cirrus scoffed and looked down at her own thighs for a moment. “You do realize who you are talking to right now, right?” She smirked and licked over her lips quickly. “Anyway, have fun at the supermarket, Cardi. I won’t tell anyone where you’re going if you promise to bring me a bar of white chocolate.” 

“Deal.” 

“Perfect.” Cirrus flashed Copia a toothy grin and resumed her stroll across the abbey. “I’ll walk you to the door.” 

“Ah, thank you.” The man smiled warmly and held his hands together behind his back, as they made their way to the front doors. 

“Where are you going?” Swiss popped out of nowhere and began to walk along with the two, who were almost by the entrance of the abbey. “I wanna go. Where are _we_ going?” He smiled widely and clapped his hands in excitement. “I’ll behave.” He rushed out quickly, noticing the glare Copia threw at him. “Promise.”

“No.” The cardinal shook his head and rolled his eyes, scoffing to himself. These ghouls would be the death of him. How come they always managed to creep up on him? Considering how they acted on stage, he found it peculiar how he could never see them coming. 

“Come on.” Swiss sighed in an overly dramatic manner, leaning against one of the doors of the main entrance. He pouted a little bit, just for good measure, giving Copia his best puppy dog eyes in hopes to change the man’s mind.

“No. I’m going to the supermarket, okay? And I want some peace. You stay here.” 

The ghouls were impossible sometimes. Copia never had kids of his own because he didn’t think he had the time to take care of them. If he was going to be a father, then he was doing it the right way. He’d been working under Papa Nihil’s command for years and it had been more than enough to teach Copia how to _not_ be a father. So, he made the decision to not have children. But now it was like life was fucking him over and gave him not one, or two, but _seven_ ghouls to look after. Those had to be worse than kids, for sure. 

The ghoul groaned tiredly and kicked his leg around a little, crossing his arms over his chest in defeat as he stared at Copia with a distant look. He narrowed his eyes at the man and nodded slowly. “Alright. Sure. _But_.” 

Of course. There was always a ‘but’ with them. Copia had already reached for the car keys and raised an eyebrow as he stepped out of the abbey. “Yes?” He spun around on the back of his heels to face Swiss once he was near his car. “Let me guess, you want me to get you something too?” He scoffed and shook his head. “Your kind is very predictable.” He teased, though there was nothing but adoration laced in his words. Copia could complain about his musicians all he wanted, but he appreciated them deeply. Hell, maybe he actually loved them. They had become his family, after all. 

Too? Swiss furrowed his eyebrows to himself behind the mask, his head snapping quickly to the side to face Cirrus. “You asked something as well?” 

Cirrus smirked and nodded slightly. “Obviously. I’m keeping the secret.”

“What secret?”

“Of him going out without us?” Cirrus scoffed. “You’re really slow sometimes, you know that? Thank Satan you’re cute.” She laughed softly, wrapping an arm around Swiss’ waist as she leaned into his side. Her gaze landed on the cardinal once again, who had already started the car. 

Copia met Cirrus’ stare for a second, resting his elbow on the steering wheel casually. “Well? Are you gonna ask for something or not?” He looked over at Swiss and tilted his head to the side slightly with a light nod, urging him to ask for whatever it was. He would probably request candies. He had noticed Swiss had found a particular interest in lollipops. All ghouls had a sweet tooth, really. Copia had learned that the hard way, after his secret stash of sweets got raided every single time he replenished it. How did they even find it? It would forever be a mystery. None of the ghouls had dared to rat out on each other when Copia asked them about it. Although, his gut told him Dewdrop was the most likely responsible one. 

A grin slowly began to appear across Swiss’ face, humming softly to himself. He stood up on his tip toes excitedly and nodded eagerly at Copia’s words. “A crown.” 

“I beg your pardon?” The cardinal blinked in shock. 

“Did I stutter?” 

“I’m not buying you a fucking _crown_.”

“Wasn’t I supposed to wear my independence like one, though?”

“That song ain’t even about you.” Copia scoffed and stared at the ghoul in disbelief. He couldn’t be serious. He had been mentally preparing to spend some more time in the candy shop. Not to stop by at a jewelry store. “Are you going to pay for it? I don’t mind if it’s your money on the line. Because it definitely won’t be the Clergy’s.”

“A plastic one. I bought a tiara before but Dew broke it.” Swiss rushed out quickly and rolled his eyes, way too amused by Copia’s expression. 

The cardinal shook his head, incredulity written all over his face, as he tried to put the small pieces of information together. “You have a tiara?”

“Had.” Swiss corrected seriously and gave Copia a single nod. “Yes.”

“What the f—” Copia dragged out the ‘f’ sound and raised his eyebrows, letting out an exasperated sigh. “You know what? I don’t even want to know.” He murmured and rubbed his face with both hands. “I’ll get you another tiara then.”

“Thanks!” Swiss hummed happily and began to wave dramatically at Copia, as if that would be the last he saw of the cardinal. “Take care! Be safe! Watch out for children!” He called as the man rolled his eyes and simply drove away. 

Cirrus scoffed and shook her head, letting out a soft sigh as they stared at Copia’s car getting smaller and smaller in size as it disappeared into the horizon. “So.” She cleared her throat and couldn’t help the high pitched laugh that came out of her. The sound was so sweet, Cirrus didn’t even know she could produce it before that moment.

“So?” The male looked down at Cirrus, wrapping an arm around the ghoulette’s shoulders. He pulled her off the door and led her back inside the abbey, swiftly kicking it close with the heel of his foot. How did he manage to make such a simple motion look so elegant? Swiss had a truly captivating essence that none of the other ghouls could properly convey. 

“Are you not going to tell me why you had a tiara?”

“Do I need a reason to own one?”

“No.” Cirrus scoffed and rolled her eyes, sighing softly as they headed back into the living room to join the rest of their bandmates. “But it’s _you_ we’re talking about here. You don’t usually make random decisions. Not that I’m saying that your decisions are particularly _adequate_ most of the time, but you’re not exactly impulsive.”

“I’m just the king.” Swiss shrugged a shoulder, walking over to the couch Rain was laying on. He lifted the water ghoul’s legs gently and sat down, placing them back down on his lap before Rain could start complaining about moving him. “Everybody knows that.”

Propping himself up onto his elbows, Rain looked over at Swiss and scoffed softly. “The king? King of what exactly?”

“The king of dancing, of course.” 

Mountain placed his book down at that, stretching out his long legs for a second before he stood up from his chair. “King of dancing?” He let out a soft chuckle and shook his head, lifting his arms above his head. “And who crowned you exactly?” He teased and laced his own fingers together, moaning softly at the pull in his muscles.

“I did.” 

Swiss had always been quite… confident. He was smug about almost everything that involved his persona, but in a way that didn’t come out as arrogant. Maybe because he was awfully charismatic and could charm anyone if he put his mind to it. Being selected for Ghost only fueled that. The other ghouls were worried he would end up becoming an asshole, at first. But much to everyone’s surprise, he didn’t. The newly found fame of representing the Clergy in the band only increased his already impressive dancing skills. It was nothing new. He managed to seduce anyone with them. Though nothing could compare to when he was on stage. Swiss simply lost all inhibition and allowed himself to get lost in the music. The way he danced was just his body responding to such intense melodies. He couldn’t help it. And if others enjoyed watching, he was perfectly fine with it.

Aether, who had been staring at them all talk from the corner of the room, broke his silence. “You can’t just crown yourself. That’s unfair.” He scoffed and shook his head. 

Swiss shot Aether a glare at that and shrugged a shoulder. “Of course I can.”

“No! That’s not how it works.” Aether huffed, letting out a quite exasperated sigh for such a trivial matter. It wasn’t common for him to fight insignificant arguments. And now all of a sudden he was getting worked up over a plastic tiara? Weird.

“No? Ask humans. It has worked pretty well for them.” Swiss scoffed. 

“I wouldn’t exactly use humans as a guide to follow.” Mountain interjected and slid his hands into his back pockets. 

“I can dance.” Aether hummed, his eyes meeting Swiss’ gaze once more. “And you can’t actually say you’re the king of dancing without proving it, you know? What if _I_ am the one most deserving of that crown instead?”

“Tiara.” Cirrus corrected and brought up her index finger to her lips, biting at the tip of her nail in amusement. 

Aether blinked quickly a few times, lips parting some. “What?”

“Tiara. He had a tiara. Not actually a crown. So all you’re fighting here is a plastic tiara.” She giggled.

Aether opened his mouth to reply, but no words came out. He was cut off by a loud, sudden, slam that caused everyone to jump. 

“What the—” Rain whispered to himself, his heart racing at the sudden intrusion. He scanned the room quickly and let out a heavy sigh, as his eyes landed on Dew. 

The fire ghoul had a hand on the door, which was now flat against the wall where it hit when he so violently opened it. Dew smiled at that and shrugged a shoulder, his eyes landing on Rain who was giving him a disapproving glare. Cumulus was standing besides him holding onto a bowl of lollipops, one already in her mouth.

“Oops.” Dew smirked.

Swiss’ eyes traveled to the pair and raised his eyebrows, but not due to their not at all subtle entrance. “Is that— Those are mine!”

“What?” The lead guitarist asked innocently as he stepped into the room, after Cumulus. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He hummed and collapsed dramatically onto a couch, eyes slipping shut. He kicked a leg over the armrest, as he laid back down over the cushions. Trying to move as little as possible from his comfortable position, he reached into his pocket for a lollipop and quickly unwrapped it. He gave Swiss a cheeky wink and shoved the candy into his mouth. 

Of course. 

Swiss should’ve been more careful about it. 

When Dew found his tiara, he practically found all of his treasures. It was just a small chest of random human things he bought during tours that amazed him to no end. Lollipops? Delicious. Scissors? Incredible. They were tiny knives that even a kid could easily handle. Magnets? So much fun. He was still trying to understand why the pieces don’t stick together randomly but only on certain sides. No one had taken the time to explain how poles worked to him. It was definitely a task that would take at least a couple of hours. The ghoul was too curious for his own good and would definitely bombard with questions whoever attempted such a feat. 

Cumulus gasped softly at the new information, her eyes shooting daggers at Dew. “You told me these were yours!” She sighed heavily and pursed her lips together tightly. Her mind was already working out ten possible ways to tell Swiss she was sorry for, accidentally, stealing from him. 

“What were you talking about?” Dew ignored Cumulus and looked over at the other ghouls. “Did we interrupt? I’m sorry.” He shrugged carelessly, his nails gently digging into the leather of the couch. 

“We were just discussing my reign.” Swiss sighed exasperatedly and stretched his arms. “Which I would be ruling in peace if _someone_ had been a bit more careful. Now all I have is a broken tiara. But!” He hummed and grinned widely, clapping his hands once for dramatism. “No worries, because I decided to get an upgrade and asked Copia for a crown. Though he said he would bring me another tiara. It’s a good replacement. I can live with that.”

Rain stared at Swiss for a moment and bit at the inside of his cheek, chuckling to himself. He couldn’t believe how he ended up sharing most of his days with such a diverse group of ghouls. It was overwhelming at first, but Rain got used to their recurrent antics and loud personalities. He even found himself participating in them more often than not. Nonetheless, he would’ve still appreciated a heads-up as to what he would be dealing with when he first was summoned for Ghost. But then again, it was the honor of a lifetime; Rain was in no place to make demands. 

“You are absolutely ridiculous and I hope you are aware of that.” The water ghoul scoffed, his eyes shining with amusement as he looked over Swiss. Worst of all — or best, he couldn’t decide— was that he could clearly picture the other ghoul prancing around with a plastic tiara. 

Swiss’ words suddenly hit Dew and his eyes widened, sitting up properly on the couch in a rush. He took the candy out of his mouth with a loud pop, pointing it in an accusatory manner at the multi-instrumentalist ghoul. “Hold on a second.” He gasped, placing his free hand over his chest, faking hurt. “I had already replaced your tiara! I told you broke it by _accident_. It’s not like I intentionally wanted to destroy it, alright? Don’t make me look like the bad guy here. You’re acting as if I’m a public danger.” He huffed.

“What are you talking about? You definitely didn’t replace it. Left me all helpless to pick up the pieces.” Swiss sighed dramatically and touched his forehead with the back of his hand, pretending to fall onto the closest ghoul’s arms. He was glad it was Mountain who was there to catch him, because anyone else would’ve definitely let him fall. 

“I did.”

“Did not.”

“So did!” Dew snapped and angrily placed the lollipop back in his mouth, so to free his hand. “It’s not my fault you didn’t appreciate the crown I got you. Rude.” He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest. 

A tired groan echoed through the room as Cirrus held her head, eyes widening slightly as she glanced back and forth between the two. “Will you two _please_ cut it off? You’re making my head hurt. It’s just a fucking tiara.”

“Crown.” Dew interjected quickly. “My honour is at stake here, Cirrus, love, please.” 

“It was a fucking Burger King crown.” Swiss snapped back at Dew, having to restrain himself from baring his teeth at him. 

“It was better than nothing! You’re so ungrateful.” Dew sighed heavily in disappointment and shook his head.

Swiss cleared his throat and held his hands together, eyes slipping shut. He took in a shaky breath and let it out slowly, as his eyes fluttered open once again. “We’re losing focus.” He spoke calmly, positively ignoring Dew’s presence. “Which is how _I_ am the true dancing king. Or queen. I’ll gladly hold both titles.” He smiled warmly 

“I could easily beat you dancing.” Aether hummed, checking over his nails and adjusting the rings around his fingers. “You haven’t seen my moves.” 

“Oh boy.” Cumulus whispered softly to herself, as she unwrapped another lollipop and looked between the two ghouls in concern.

Swiss’ eyes darkened at Aether’s provocation. He nodded slowly and took a few steps closer to the other ghoul, until he was standing right in front of him only a few mere inches away from his mask. Swiss didn’t think of himself as a trouble maker. Whether he ended up actually causing distress or not was another story. But it wasn’t because he was actively seeking any of it. Occasionally, a prank would get out of hand or he ended up forgetting how strong he actually was; both scenarios often involved a few of the abbey’s relics being shattered. Thankfully, for his well being and the continuing of his existence on Earth, he could charm himself out of any situation. He took pride in being the only ghoul that Sister Imperator forgave no matter how much damage was caused. 

Dancing was something Swiss _adored_. He truly believed he was amazing at it and it was the _one_ thing that truly distinguished him from the other ghouls. Why would Aether try and take that away from him? Not like he could, anyway, because Swiss was sure that Aether could absolutely not bust a move. Not even if his life depended on it. Sure, he could jump around and be as energetic as he wanted. Swiss loved the enthusiasm. But that didn’t mean he could _dance_. 

“Are you challenging me?” Swiss spoke softly and squared his shoulders. 

“Are you scared?” Aether scoffed and placed his hands on his hips, taking a small step closer to Swiss. He head butted the horns of his mask against his, snickering at the growl it elicited from the other ghoul. 

A deafening silence engulfed the room. 

No one even dared blink, waiting to see how the situation would unfold. 

Mountain’s eyes quickly met Rain’s, a grin slowly growing on both of their faces. They stared at each other for a second, trying to contain themselves from laughing at the entire ordeal. Everything was so fucking ridiculous. How did Rain manage to daily survive their nonsense? It was genuinely a mystery. Maybe because he had actually grown fond of them all and even if he was seen as the shy one, he would be more than willing to cut someone to protect any of his bandmates. 

“Are you on the square?” The water ghoul spoke up, biting harshly at the corner of his lower lip. He was trying his best to contain the cackle that was threatening to rip through his chest. 

“Are you on the level?” Mountain laughed loudly, giving Rain a quick high five at their own joke. 

Cirrus stared at the two and shook her head in disappointment, though ended up giggling at how surreal the entire situation seemed to be. “Don’t you see they were trying to act all tough and shit?” She smiled widely and stretched her hand out over to Aether and Swiss, who were glaring at the other two ghouls that so rudely interrupted them.

“I saw something similar on Animal Planet the other day.” Dew hummed and smirked as Aether flipped him off. “Beast!” He pointed a finger at him and stuck his tongue out playfully. 

Cumulus held her head in her hands for a moment and sighed softly. As much as she found their banter amusing, Swiss looked like he would bite someone’s arm off if they continued teasing him. She sat up and clapped her hands loudly, causing everyone to stop and look at her. 

“We’re settling this.” She spoke slowly, making eye contact back and forth between Aether and Swiss. “In a _civilized_ way, hopefully.”

The multi-instrumentalist rolled his eyes at that and crossed his arms over his chest, huffing softly. He could try and fight her, but he didn’t want Cirrus hunting him down for snapping at Cumulus. He’d rather avoid any eventual showdown with the taller ghoulette, that would most definitely end in him losing some of his pride. As if the risk losing his dance title wasn’t enough already. He was confident in his abilities, though. There was no way he would lose to _Aether_. 

“What do you propose?” Swiss murmured, resting his hands on his waist. 

“Isn’t it obvious? A dance off!” Cumulus grinned happily, already excited.

Rain barked out a laugh at that, hands quickly covering up his mouth so as to silence himself. He bit at the inside of his cheek and shook his head, taking in a few shaky breaths to regain his composure. “Sorry.” He cleared his throat and smiled small. “But this is just going to end with something broken.”

“Probably.” Mountain nodded in agreement, scratching at his chin. “We should do this in the backyard then. If we break something in here Nihil is gonna send us all back to Hell.”

Everyone shared a look at that and nodded.

-

“Who’s going to judge?” Aether asked once they were outside, already stretching his legs and doing some jumping jacks to warm up. The soft scent of roses that lingered in the air was enough to calm him down a bit. Nonetheless, he was still very much riled up with Swiss’ egotistical attitude. 

“We will.” Cirrus answered easily, wrapping an arm around Cumulus’ shoulders. “You will all dance for us and we’ll decide who’s the best.”

Rain stared at the ghoulettes in slight shock and furrowed his eyebrows as he shook his head. “What? Hold up.” He lifted his hands up and pressed them together. “What do you mean _all_ of us?” 

“They need a little competition. It’s only fair if we really want to crown the ultimate dancer of the group.” Cumulus explained easily and nodded, taking a seat at one of the various benches settled around the abbey’s gardens. 

The water ghoul pursed his lips together, uncertainty written all over his expression. The others couldn’t see the worry lines forming under his mask, but the emotion was strong enough to convey through his stare. He swallowed nervously and shook his head, playing with the rings that decorated his fingers. “I don’t want to dance.”

Cumulus softened at the sight of the shy ghoul. She walked over to Rain and wrapped an arm around his waist, pulling him in close to her side, resting her head against his bicep. “You don’t need to dance if you don’t want to.” She cooed, her maternal instinct kicking up inside her. She didn’t quite understand why she felt in such a way towards the bassist; she just did. Ever since Rain was summoned she had always felt protective over him and promised herself to look out for him. Especially when Dew and Swiss dragged him into whatever bullshit they were up to. It was most likely because Rain was the youngest of the group.

“Really?” Rain let out a heavy breath he didn’t know he was holding. Relief spread quickly over his eyes, washing away all signs of anxiety that had so suddenly overcome him. “Great.” He hummed and smiled widely, holding his hands together behind his back. 

“I don’t want to dance either.” Dew interjected and huffed, crossing his arms over his chest as he stared at the two cuddling ghouls. Rain was looking a little too smug under Cumulus’ protective stance for his liking. 

The air ghoulette looked over at Dew at the sound of his voice and raised an eyebrow under her mask. “So?” She scoffed. 

“Are you serious?” 

The special treatment Rain always seemed to get from everyone was impressive. _He_ used to be the center of attention before. Sure, it wasn’t the same type as the one Rain received. He wasn’t being looked out for the entire time, nor had the others cooing at him whenever he spoke. What did Rain even have that caused everyone to fall under his spell? That was some bullshit right there. Dew didn’t buy it. He was a ghoul just like the rest of them. That innocent and pure act? Fake. Rain could be playing the rest, but he certainly wasn’t fooling him. Dew could see past that.

“Why? Rain’s getting a get out of jail free card.” The tiny fire ghoul growled slightly at Cumulus’ answer and his sharp nails dug gently into his own forearms, staring at her in disbelief. 

“Yes, but he’s Rain.”

Dew’s eyes burned, his irises seeming to burst up in flames at those words. What sort of shitty argument was that? “And I'm Dew!” He choked out, throwing his arms up towards the sky as a familiar heat of rage slowly began to overtake his senses. 

“So? He doesn’t have to do anything he doesn’t want to.”

“But—” 

A small, subtle, smirk decorated Rain’s lips. It would’ve been unnoticeable, but Dew was a good observer. The fire ghoul’s eyes widened, jaw dropping as he stared at the bassist. He pointed a finger at Rain and stuttered out for words, too dumbstruck with the darkness behind the water ghoul’s eyes to formulate anything coherent. “Did you see that?” He cried, after he finally managed to gather his thoughts.

“You’re acting like a child. You’re dancing. Rain’s judging with us.” Cumulus snapped, her grip on the ghoul tightening protectively. “Period.” She huffed and led Rain towards the nearest bench, where Cirrus was already sitting at. 

With a heavy stomp, Dew reached into his pocket and took out a guitar pick. He threw it at him and narrowed his eyes when the water ghoul swiftly caught the object before it could hit him. It’s not that he had anything against Rain. Far from it. But sometimes jealousy got the best of him. And well, Rain enjoyed the attention. It meant he could get away with practically anything and there was no way he would let go of it anytime soon. The bassist was perfectly capable of standing up for himself, but he wouldn’t complain if he got extra back up. 

Mountain shook his head at the scene and sighed softly, as he slid his hands into his pockets. It wouldn’t be a normal day without one of the tiny fire ghoul’s tantrums. But it was alright. They all loved Dew nonetheless. Not like they understood him most of the time, but that wasn’t really necessary for their coexistence. “Do you just randomly carry guitar picks around to throw at people?” 

Dew’s fiery orbs landed on Mountain’s awfully calm ones. He narrowed his eyes and scoffed, throwing one at the tall ghoul’s face in return. It bounced against one of his horns and landed on the grass near his feet. “It’s a fire ghoul thing. You wouldn’t understand.” He huffed and crossed his arms. 

“You’re hilarious.” Mountain rolled his eyes and turned to face the three judging ghouls, who were already settled on the bench, each with a notebook in hand. Where the hell did they get those from?

Cirrus bit at her lower lip gently and began to write down big numbers from one to ten on each page, for her to score. She was glad that Rain wasn’t participating, because she was sure Cumulus would be biased. The taller air ghoulette was all about being just. She was brutally honest all the time, which most didn’t really enjoy. But it wasn’t her problem people couldn’t handle the truth. “Each of you will have one shot at this. That means, you only get one dance. Then three of us will score and we have a winner.”

“King.” Swiss clarified, nodding some as he grinned at Cirrus. He bit at the inside of his cheek excitedly, holding his hands behind his back. He dug his nails gently into his own wrists to try and calm down, ignoring how hard his heart was beating inside his rib cage. He was absolutely positive he had the contest in the bag. 

“What?”

“The winner.” 

“Fucking hell.” Cirrus sighed heavily, with a shake of her head. “Right. Sure. Whatever. _King_.” She placed the notebook down on her lap, leaning against the backrest of the bench. 

Aether could _feel_ Swiss’ confidence and it boiled his blood. Never in a million years the quintessence ghoul would’ve pictured himself getting worked up over _dancing_. It was probably a lot of pent up anger and energy that was coming out in the form of a dance battle. He was used to bottling up his emotions, in order to stay cool and collected, which helped him keep the rest of the ghouls in control whenever Copia wasn’t around to do so. Getting sent back to the pit was absolutely _not_ an option for Aether. No other ghoul would risk his stay on Earth due to their own bad behaviour. 

“Do we at least get some time to practice?” Aether murmured and placed his hands on his hips. 

“What? No!” Swiss scoffed exasperatedly and shook his head. “Who needs to practice? If you’re as good as you say you are, then you should always be prepared. So unprofessional.”

“ _Unprofess_ — You’re not even a professional dancer yourself!” The rhythm guitarist snarled.

“How do you know I’m not?”

“Fuck, are you serious? You’re unbelievable. You don’t even know how to properly dance.”

“What are you talking about now? Of course I can _properly_ dance.” Swiss growled. With two long steps, he found himself standing right in front of Aether once again. He pushed at the ghoul’s shoulders, head butting the horns of his mask with his for the second time that day already. 

Rain’s eyes widened slightly, a very amused, small, smirk decorating his face. He couldn’t believe that the first time he saw any of his bandmates fight was over who got the best moves. But hey, he wasn’t complaining. It was a nice form of entertainment. He shared a look with Mountain, before his eyes landed on Dew. The water ghoul scanned the two for a moment, before turning his head to the side so as to look at Cirrus and Cumulus. 

If Rain’s perception didn’t fail him, which never did, then they were all thinking the same thing. 

“Why aren’t we recording this?” Rain whispered and brought his thumb up to his mouth, forcing himself to nibble at the pad of it so to not let out a laugh.

“They would notice and stop acting like fools.” Mountain murmured and sat down besides Rain, resting his elbows on his thighs as he leaned forward. “Just try to cherish the moment as much as possible, because this is gold.” 

Dew sat down on the ground by Mountain, holding his knees to his chest as he stared at the two ghouls who seemed close to ripping each other to shreds. “I really hope this is enough to prove that I’m not the child of the group.” He whispered and raised his eyebrows when Aether pushed at Swiss’ chest. 

“Going all Magic Mike ain’t dancing.” Aether growled.

Swiss blinked quickly in shock and stared at Aether for a good few moments, not knowing what to reply. He bit at the inside of his cheek, scratching at his brain to come up with a good remark. There was none. Because he had no idea what the fuck Aether was talking about.

“Who’s Mike? Why are you bringing other people into this?” Swiss scoffed and turned away from Aether, so to face the rest of his bandmates instead. “Any of you know what the hell is he going on about?” He was way too dumbstruck to continue their fight. 

The other five ghouls shook their heads, some shrugging in confusion. They weren’t exactly familiar with popular human culture entertainment. Most of them were summoned right before the tour, which meant they didn’t have much time to focus on anything else apart from Ghost. 

“I think humans like to engage in fake dark arts. They call it magic but it’s just shit with cards and stuff?” Cirrus tried to explain and shrugged a shoulder. “Although, I have no idea what this fake magician Mike has to do with anything.”

Aether should’ve known better than to try and use human references with the rest of the ghouls. He covered half of his face with a hand, staring at the other in shock as they tried to guess what he meant. He bit at the inside of his cheek and let out a soft sigh, before speaking up. “It’s a movie about male strippers.”

Swiss’ eyes almost popped out of his mask. “How _dare_ you compare me to— Wait, what?” He grinned widely as realization hit him. A laugh ripped forcefully through his chest, leaning forward to hold onto his knees. “What were you doing watching male strippers?” He breathed out through his chuckles. “Out of all the human aspects you could explore, you went with movies about male strippers? And one that pretends to engage in dark arts?” 

“No!” Aether groaned and scoffed. “I mean, yes! But they don’t use actual magic as we know it, okay? And it’s not like I willingly wanted to watch it, anyway. A couple of Sisters dragged me into it and I just. I couldn’t say no.” He huffed and crossed his arms over his chest, rolling his eyes at Swiss’ dramatic laughter. “Can we focus on the things that matter?”

“And what are the things that matter, exactly? I still don’t understand how this magician Mike has anything to do with my dancing.” Swiss sighed shakily, once he had managed to gather his composure once again. 

“Moving your hips around ain’t dancing.” Aether snapped and glared daggers at Swiss. “What’s even the point of doing that on stage? I guess that’s all you can do when you’re so far in the back.”

“Damn.” Dew breathed out at that and raised his eyebrows in amusement, his grin growing at the entire display. “Can we _please_ film it?” He looked over his shoulder at Mountain, who simply shook his head once in return. 

“They’re just being little shits over nothing. They’re gonna laugh about this in the morning.” The drummer murmured, as he stood up. He stretched his limbs for a moment and looked at the three ghouls sitting on the bench. “Can we get this over and done with, please?” 

It was indeed taking them far too long to settle such a simple matter. Rain crossed a leg over the other, tracing random patterns over his thighs with the tips of his fingers. He wondered how long Aether had been wanting to challenge Swiss for a dance off. The rhythm guitarist seemed way too worked up for it to be all just a random ego boost. It made him realize how little he actually knew about the other ghouls. He searched into his pocket and took out his phone. Stealing a small glance at Dew, just to make sure the fire ghoul wasn’t paying any attention to him, Rain typed in his password. He tapped on his journal app with his thumb and bit at the inside of his cheek as he unlocked it. No judging, okay? He just needed a safe space to pour all of his thoughts. An actual journal book was briefly considered, but that would definitely end up with Dew stealing it and reading through it. Yeah, no. Not an option. 

_Dear diary:_

_Swiss and Aether have been whining for the past half hour and won’t calm down until one of them wins a dance contest. I have a feeling this will end up badly. My prediction is that there will be a couple broken bones. My guess? Dew, obviously. And who will win? Swiss. Obviously._

The water ghoul sighed softly to himself as he quickly exited the app and locked his phone in a rush. He bit at the inside of his cheek and cleared his throat, looking up at the ghouls that were already standing in front of him. Why were they staring at him? Did they suspect of his journal? 

“What?” Rain rushed out nervously, as he stuffed his phone back into his pocket. 

“We’re waiting for you.” Mountain explained and crossed his arms over his chest. “You’re a judge?” He tried again after noticing the ghoul’s bewildered state. 

“Oh.” The bassist looked at the two ghoulettes by his side, who were giving him expectant looks. Right. Needed to pay attention. “Yes. Of course.” He cleared his throat and nodded. “I am ready.” He reassured and held onto the notebook gently. 

“Well. Dance.” Cirrus hummed softly, as she looked up at the other four static ghouls in the middle of the garden. 

“What? No music?” Aether shook his head. 

Simultaneously, Mountain and Dew rolled their eyes. That would definitely end in another bicker with Swiss. They were never going to get anything done if those two kept discussing every single detail. The earth ghoul let out an exasperated sigh and crossed his arms over his chest, shooting the three judges a glare. “Please.” He groaned.

Cumulus gave a single nod and stood up. “Okay, I’ll—”

“What, you can’t do this without music? Are you _that_ dependent on an external rhythm that you can’t dance without it? You really aren’t a dancer, huh?” Swiss smirked and shrugged a shoulder, letting out a soft sigh. “Alright then. If he _needs_ it, then we can do it with music.”

Aether took back his words immediately. He insisted on how he didn’t actually need any music at all. He excused himself by saying he was simply worried about the judging ghouls having a better experience. It was all a whole lot of crap and everyone saw right through it. But not even Swiss had enough energy to call him out on it.

So. 

They danced. 

And Rain had never seen something so awfully chaotic in his entire life.

Mountain was… terrible, really. The earth ghoul tried to beat the rest with some robot dance moves. But he just didn’t manage to pull them off. He looked rigid and like he was genuinely not having a good time, which concerned Rain a little. No one was supposed to look like _that_ when dancing.

The water ghoul bit at the pad of his thumb nervously and looked away from Mountain’s horrendous dance moves. “He’s so stiff...” He whispered to himself and shook his head. Maybe looking at another one of his bandmates would help him shake off the disturbing feeling he got from Mountain. That ghoul just wasn’t meant to dance. Ever. 

Rain then made the mistake of looking at Dew. “What the actual fuck?” His jaw fell, eyes widening as he stared at Dew who was stomping around and head banging in a way too aggressive manner. How the hell was his head still attached to his neck? It looked really fucking painful. Rain pursed his lips together, a cold shiver running down his spine as he imagined the fire ghoul getting injured. “Satan.” He breathed out shakily. “Swiss, I’m counting on you.” He murmured and turned his head so to look at the only ghoul who was _actually_ dancing. A small, content, sigh left Rain’s lips, his eyes softening at the sight of Swiss. He had never seen him dancing like that before. It was almost like he knew ballet? Rain had so many questions, but he couldn’t be bothered with asking at the moment. 

“Woah.” Cirrus whispered, eyes wide as she stared at the way Swiss elegantly stretched out his legs and arms with every move. 

Rain turned his head to the side and noticed the two ghoulettes were just as transfixed as he was. He smiled small and bit at the corner of his lower lip, humming softly in content when he focused his attention back on Swiss. A small gasp left his lips when the ghoul twirled on one foot, before bending backwards. Who knew Dew’s signature move on stage would look better on Swiss? 

“He really is the dancing king.” Cumulus nodded and held her hands together close to her chest. “I could watch him all day. Did any of you know he could pull off _that_?” She asked in disbelief, as Swiss broke into a split. “Oh dear, he’s flexible too.”

Aether’s eyes landed on the three very mesmerized ghouls and frowned deeply. Were they really allowing themselves to be fooled by some of Swiss’ cheap tricks? Being flexible wasn’t dancing. It wasn’t fair. Meanwhile he was pulling off some pretty respectable dance moves, but of course no one was looking at him. How was he supposed to get their attention back on him? Was it ever on him at all? He bit at his tongue, his sharp canines digging into the muscle harshly. His heart was pounding erratically in his chest, his ears beginning to ring with anticipation. He was going to do it. He _had_ to do it. It was the only move he could think would be good enough to outshine Swiss. Plus, it was a classic. There was no failing with that one. 

“It’s gonna be great.” Aether whispered and smirked to himself.

It wasn’t. 

Gasps. 

A scream.

Horrid sounds of bones breaking. 

“Aether!” Cirrus cried out as she stood up in a hurry, rushing over to him. She kneeled down besides the quintessence ghoul and bit at her lower lip harshly, reaching out to gently touch over his arms. They were angled in a way they shouldn’t naturally be. “Oh fuck. Call an ambulance! Fuck, Copia is gonna kill us all.” She whimpered and looked up when she heard a laugh. 

Who the fuck was laughing?

“Did you fucking see that? Oh shit.” Dew laughed loudly, holding onto his stomach as his ribs started to ache. “Fuck. Mountain! I told you we needed to film this.” He shook his head and wiped at his eyes gently, which were starting to water. There were enough ghouls worried about Aether already; one laughing wouldn’t hurt. 

“The ambulance is on its way.” Rain breathed as he got off the phone, biting at his lower lip harshly. He had to look away. Exposed bones weren’t his thing. 

“I didn’t know you could break your arms by doing the worm.” Cumulus spoke softly, already trying to get Aether to stand up. “Come on, love. We need to get you to the entrance. It’s gonna be okay.” She tried to sound as reassuring as possible, but the truth was that she was terrified. She placed a hand on Aether’s back and rubbed at it slowly, trying her best to soothe the ghoul. Though, really, there was not much she could do.

“It was a nice attempt.” Swiss cleared his throat gently, wrapping an arm around Aether’s middle. He knew when to stop fighting. “Kudos for that. I can’t do it. I’m sure it would’ve been amazing.” He smiled warmly and furrowed his eyebrows as he stared at his twisted arms. 

“Shut up!” Aether growled and closed his eyes, trying to ignore the pain ripping through his entire body. He felt as if every single bone in him had broken and not just his arms. It was making him weak; he couldn’t even get his legs to function properly. 

“Okay, okay.” Swiss murmured and sighed heavily, shaking his head at Cumulus. “I can take him.” He insisted and began to walk with him back inside the abbey and towards the main door. The sounds of their rushed footsteps echoed through the halls and he begged to the one below that Sister Imperator wouldn’t hear them. The last thing they needed was her wrath upon them all. Seeing her react to an injured ghoul? An injured guitarist ghoul who couldn’t use his arms anymore? Yeah, Swiss had no patience for one of her sermons. 

The seven ghouls waited impatiently at the front of the abbey for the ambulance to arrive. Time seemed to slow down as they stood there, none of them daring to say a word. What were they supposed to talk about, anyway? The only good of the entire situation was that, at least, Dew stopped laughing. 

“Oh no.” Mountain murmured and furrowed his eyebrows as the ambulance pulled up at the abbey. 

“What?” Cirrus snapped. It wasn’t her intention to do so. She was just worried sick and hearing any negative comments wasn’t helping. “‘Oh no’ what?”

“The ambulance.”

“What about it?”

“Fuck.” Rain whispered and covered his eyes with a hand for a second. “I’m sorry, I just googled hospital and called the first number I saw.” He explained and bit at his lower lip nervously, as the vehicle came to a stop in front of them. The big red cross on the side of the car made them all flinch. 

Cirrus’ eyes widened and hit the back of Rain’s head in disbelief. “You called a _Catholic_ hospital? What the fuck!” 

“I’m sorry!” Rain whined and rubbed gently over the spot Cirrus hit, pouting a little. 

“I don’t care!” Aether cried out and shook his head, groaning in pain as tears began to well up in his eyes. He had been trying his best to hold them back but the agony was too fucking much. There was no point in pretending to be strong when he had his bones sticking out of his forearms. “Let’s fucking go! Now!” He leaned against Swiss’ side, eyes slipping shut and teeth grinding. 

Swiss shared a look with Cirrus and nodded once. 

“You can’t all get in here!” One of the paramedics called out as he opened the back door of the ambulance. 

“Shut the fuck up, we’re all going.” Dew growled, pointing a finger at the man. He narrowed his eyes and smirked as the other nodded in fear. The fire ghoul could smell it on him. Good. 

There was not much the paramedics could do with so little space to work with. The ambulance wasn’t meant to hold nine people plus a bed. Were they even people? The paramedics had no idea. All they were sure of is that those masks were creeping them out. 

“Maybe if I take this off…” The human started and reached for Aether’s mask.

“ _Don’t_.” Seven voices growled in unison. 

-  
The ride to the hospital seemed to be fucking eternal. At least that’s how Aether perceived it. Well. He didn’t really perceive much. The pain of it all caused him to pass out; it was too much to bear. 

“Can we go with him?” Rain asked once they were in the hospital, following the nurses who took Aether inside. 

“No.” The woman snapped and frowned, turning around to face the water ghoul. “And take off those bloody masks.” She growled and slammed the doors close as they headed into the ER with Aether. 

“Okay then.” Rain breathed and blinked quickly as he stared at the doors. Aether would probably need surgery, which meant they had a lot of time to kill in the meantime. “I just hope they don’t try taking off his mask.” He whispered to himself and spun around on the back of his heels, heading back to the waiting room with the others. “They didn’t say much. But I have a feeling we’re not wanted around here. I’m sure they want us out as much as we want to leave.” He sighed and sat down besides Mountain, eyes slipping shut as he melted into the seat. 

“Did you all see that, though?” Dew chuckled softly as he sat down at one of the kids’ tables, picking up a blank paper and some crayons. “His arms just... _snapped_ in half.” He shook his head and let out a soft sigh. “Guess that’s what you get when you try to defy the king, right?” He looked at Swiss out of the corner of his eye and smirked. 

The multi-instrumentalist couldn’t help the way he felt. Of course he was worried about Aether’s well being. He was a ghoul, not a monster. But the pride that warmed his heart was unmistakable. He smirked at Dew’s words and shrugged a shoulder, waving a dismissive hand in hopes of not looking so smug. “Oh, please. It was nothing.” He hummed and bit at the corner of his lower lip. 

“It was pretty impressive.” Cumulus spoke softly, letting out a heavy sigh as she rested her head against Cirrus’ shoulder. “You win, love. You’re the king. You deserve it.” She smiled warmly, and made eye contact with Swiss. 

A smirk decorated the ghoul’s face and gave the rest a small bow. “Thank you, peasants.” He teased and let out a soft chuckle. “I just hope Aether is okay. He won’t be able to play in a while. Copia will be pissed.”

“Which is why it’s a good thing we aren’t touring right now.” Mountain interjected and raised his eyebrows. “Let’s not panic. We’re already stressed enough as it is.” 

“Hmm.” Dew nodded, tongue sticking out as he focused on his drawing. “I’m making a little something for his room. To make it more pleasant. This place is too… religious. I don’t like it.” He murmured and grabbed the red crayon, so to colour the devil he just drew. He looked up as he heard a whimper and furrowed his eyebrows. The fire ghoul’s eyes landed on a kid standing besides him. “Oh hello.” He spoke slowly, his grin growing as he watched the child beginning to tremble in distress. 

The little boy’s jaw dropped, eyes wide in horror as he stared at the ghoul in front of him. What even was the creature sitting in his previous spot? He left for five minutes to go to the bathroom and now there was this… _man_ , in his seat. “H-Hi.” He whispered and reached out for his own drawing of a puppy with a shaky hand. 

“Tobi!” A woman shrieked and rushed towards the table her son was at. She swooped up the four year old into her arms and held him close to her chest, looking over Dew in fright. Something inside her told her she needed to escape, but she couldn’t move. 

“Boo.” Dew smirked, his eyes seeming to glow. 

“Dew. “ Rain rolled his eyes and laughed softly with a shake of his head. He watched as the woman ran away, the kid crying loudly as he pointed at the lead guitarist. “Behave.”

“It’s not my fault humans are weak.” Dew shrugged and picked up the black crayon. 

-

“This place is disgusting.” Cumulus breathed.

After a few hours of waiting, they were allowed in Aether’s room. Well, not exactly _allowed_. More like Dew stomped his way past the doctors and threatened to bite off a few hands. After he actually bit one of the guards who tried to hold him down, the staff just gave up. They followed the quintessence ghoul’s scent and found his room easily. 

“Those are some good additions to your look.” Mountain teased, nodding at the casts on Aether’s arms. “Are you feeling okay?” He asked and walked over to the left side of the bed, Swiss and the ghoulettes following. He furrowed his eyebrows at the cross above his bed and bit at the inside of his cheek. The earth ghoul reached over for it and turned it around in a 180 degree angle, letting out a breath of relief once the cross was inverted. “Hey, at least you didn’t go down without a fight.” He smiled warmly, stepping back some. Cirrus reached out for the wall, after she noticed Mountain's actions, and hanged a grucifix at each side of the cross. She always carried some around. ‘You never know when you’ll need them’, she said. Guess she was right after all.

“Good call.” Dew nodded at Mountain and Cirrus, as he took out the adhesive tape he stole from the receptionist out of his pocket. He taped his drawing to the wall and smiled proudly. 

“‘Satan says wash your hands’?” Rain laughed softly as he joined Dew by his side, looking over his friend’s art. 

“Yes. Satan is hygenic.” The fire ghoul explained easily and crossed his arms over his chest, as he turned to face Aether. “You were hilarious, dude. I’m sorry for your arms but. I definitely wouldn’t mind seeing it happening again.” 

Aether let out a low growl, not saying anything. He was absolutely _not_ addressing the subject. 

“It was a nice try!” Swiss laughed and shrugged softly, pointing a finger at Aether. “But. I _told_ you you couldn’t beat me. Why did you even try, honestly? We all knew I was going to win. At least now you know I _am_ the best dancer of the band and have rightfully earned my title as king. _So_. I don’t want to hear any more bullshit from you, okay, sir?” 

Cumulus giggled softly at that and shook her head. She quickly brought her fingers up to her lips, trying to cover her mouth. She didn’t want Aether to see she found the entire situation amusing. “We knew this was going to end badly.” She whispered at Cumulus and bit at her lip. “Why did we let this happen?” 

“Because, Satan, I expected someone to fall or something. Not for Aether to break _both_ of his arms. What are the possibilities of that happening, anyway? And for trying to do the _worm_?” She laughed softly, scratching at her chin gently with her index finger. 

Rain looked over his friends and smirked to himself in disbelief. Each day was even crazier than the one before with them. He took out his phone from his pocket and logged back into his journal entry.

 _I can’t believe I’m saying this, but... I was wrong. Can you believe it? Dew is fine! More than fine, actually! Aether though… He broke his arms doing the worm. What the fuck is up with that?_

_Lesson of the day: ghouls can’t dance. Or most of them, at least._

_P.S. I need to watch Magic Mike._


End file.
